Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 7 December 2010 be confirmed as a correct record for signature by the Mayor.

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the extraordinary meeting of the Council held on 22 February 2011 be confirmed as a correct record for signature by the Mayor.

There were no declarations of interest by any Members in relation to matters under consideration at the meeting.

The Mayor thanked all Members who had supported his Charity Ball in February. The event had been very well attended and had raised almost £3000 towards his Charity Appeal.

On behalf of all Members of the Council, the Mayor formally congratulated the Chief Executive, Donna Hall on her being awarded the CBE. All political party leaders joined in paying tribute to Donna’s achievements which has been recognised by the awarding of one of the most prestigious of honours.  

There had been no requests from any members of the public to speak at the meeting on any of the agenda items.

Members of the Council considered a report of the Executive Member (Transformation) seeking approval to the General Fund Revenue and Capital Budget and Council Tax level for 2011/12.

The report was presented by the Executive Member (Transformation) Councillor Kevin Joyce and set out the Executive’s overriding objective which was to protect frontline services and to deliver a budget strategy based on a number of key principles, including:

·         To continue to be a high performing Council

·         To contain Council Tax increases

·         To protect the Chorley community from the impact of the current economic situation

·         Continuing to provide value for money

·         Safeguarding frontline services and focusing on the removal of bureaucracy and managerial posts

·         Looking for opportunities to share services and generate additional revenue

·         Preparing for the future and the uncertainty over public finances

·         To look to reduce debt and the consequent financing charges.

The Council had already achieved budget savings of £0.903m from restructures which had previously been approved. The key proposals now were to achieve further savings in the 2011/12 budget amounting to £0.294m to enable additional investment in the town centre.

This would be achieved by the following initiatives:

1.    Uplifting fees and charges by an inflationary rate (excluding car parking and building control fees).

2.    Increasing income from planning fees.

3.    Realising cost savings by undertaking more work in house in policy and communications.

4.    Reducing the scope of the Mayoralty.

5.    Reducing the costs of providing Shared Assurance Services.

6.    Continuing to reduce borrowing and the subsequent impact on the budget.

7.    Introducing new car parking machines to maximise income received within the current price structure.

The report included a number of appendices with the detailed bases of the proposals. These were

Appendix A – Fees and Charges for 2011/12 and the Formal Council Tax Resolution.

Appendix B (1 - 4) – Capital Programme information

Appendix C – Treasury Strategy and Prudential Indicators

Appendix D – Statutory Finance Officer’s Report

Appendix E – Medium Term Financial Strategy

Appendix F – Significant Budget Movements

Appendix G – Special Expenses and Parish Precepts

Appendix H – Budget Consultation

Appendix I – Equality Impact Assessment

Councillor Alistair Bradley, Leader of the Labour Group circulated an alternative budget report which proposed no increase in Council tax; and included:

·         Further savings from the Council’s management and back office functions

·         More targeted investment in filling the vacant shop space in the town centre

·         A more flexible pricing and charging policy on car parking to promote town centre usage

·         Extra and significant investment in front line spending based on the principle of its “your money in your streets”

·         Reduction in Members Allowances

·         Investment to fund economic regeneration.

There was a lengthy debate on the proposals contained within both budgets, in particular,  the budget reductions for the Mayoralty and town centre investment including market rent rises, shop frontage improvements and car parking charges.

Councillor Alistair Bradley proposed and Councillor Peter Wilson seconded, the adoption of the Labour Group’s alternative budget.

The proposal was put to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 164.